Georgia WWSCAN Biweekly Newsletter Update 6/21/24

Welcome to the bi-weekly update for WWSCAN partners in Georgia! The samples provided up through 6/17/24 have been processed in the lab and data are on the site at data.wastewaterscan.org.

We are excited to share that all Georgia sites will be continuing as part of our next phase of WWSCAN, through summer 2025! Nothing about the testing will change as part of this next phase, but look out for more opportunities for further discussion and engagement about the program and results.

If you notice any bugs on the site or have any comments about it, please continue to send your feedback via email wwscan_stanford_emory@lists.stanford.edu. We thank you for your partnership!

The methods for our assays are in the public domain and links for these are provided at the end of the newsletter.

SARS-CoV-2 RNA concentrations have been between 19,000 and 195,000 copies/gram in the last two weeks. The chart below shows the raw data over the last 365 days and the population-weighted aggregated trend line for all 8 Georgia sites when the data is normalized by PMMoV. The aggregated line and the National Levels benchmarks illustrate that SARS-CoV-2 N gene RNA concentrations among Georgia sites are within the middle third level of all concentrations measured in the last year. In the Southern region, SARS-CoV-2 is in the "High" wastewater category with medium concentrations and an upward trend.

As of 6/21/24, South River and Johns Creek are in the HIGH (2 sites) wastewater category. Little River is in the MEDIUM (1 site) wastewater category. RM Clayton and Utoy Creek are in the LOW (2 sites) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for Columbus, College Park, and Big Creek.

Sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 from wastewater is available for RM Clayton and College Park (Camp Creek). The plots below show the relative proportions of different variants inferred from sequencing the entire genome of SARS-CoV-2 (Note: the sequencing variant plots are now available on the website, so the plots that are shown below are linked above if you want to interact with them). Results are based on sequencing of 2 samples per week, combined to provide a weekly value. Please note that the large gap of "no data" for College Park is because we had data available from preliminary testing while finalizing site selection for sequencing, and then began weekly sequencing in the middle of December.

In the most recent samples, JN.1 (94.8%) made up the largest proportion of lineages detected at RM Clayton. Note that the most recent data is shown below & should be updated as more samples are analyzed (through June 8 at RM Clayton).

Sequencing data is now also available in aggregate across all sites in WWSCAN with sequencing data through June 15th. That plot is shown below and also suggests that KP.2 is the most abundant variant across all sites (27.0%). Then JN.1.16 was the second highest making up 15.8% across all sites.

Influenza A (IAV) RNA concentrations have been below 6,100 copies/gram in the last two weeks. The chart below shows the raw data and the population-weighted aggregated trend line for all 8 Georgia sites when the data is normalized by PMMoV is in the middle third level. As of 6/21/24, RM Clayton, South River, Utoy Creek, Johns Creek, and Little River are in the LOW (5 sites) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for Columbus, College Park, and Big Creek.

Beginning May 15th, we expanded prospective H5 marker testing to all WastewaterSCAN sites. Below is a heat map showing the Georgia sites with samples collected tested thus far. Over the last few weeks, results have been non-detect at all Georgia sites with data available. For more information about this testing and interpretation of results, see our FAQ sheet here.

Influenza B (IBV) RNA has not been detected at any Georgia site within the last two weeks, according to the heat map below.

As of 6/21/24, RM Clayton, South River, Utoy Creek, Johns Creek, and Little River are in the LOW (5 sites) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for Columbus, College Park, and Big Creek.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) RNA has been detected at the Johns Creek and Little River sites over the last two weeks, according to the heat map below. At the Johns Creek site, RSV was detected at the higher concentrations below 6,300 copies/g. Creek site In the Southern region, RSV remains in the "Low" category and not in onset.

As of 6/21/24, RM Clayton, South River, Utoy Creek, Johns Creek, and Little River are in the LOW (5 sites) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for Columbus, College Park, and Big Creek.

HMPV (human metapneumovirus) RNA concentrations in wastewater are below 46,000 copies/g. HMPV RNA concentrations in Georgia are within the upper third level of all concentrations measured in the last year. RM Clayton & Johns Creek are in the HIGH (2 sites) wastewater category, as of 6/21/24. But Little River, South River, and Utoy Creek are in the LOW (3 sites) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for Columbus, College Park, and Big Creek. Nationally and in the South, HMPV is in the "Low" category and currently not in onset.

EV-D68 RNA has been detected at South River, Johns Creek, Columbus and RM Clayton sites over the last couple weeks, according to the heat map below. As a reminder, the color blue means the sample was non-detect for EV-D68 RNA and the colors get darker with higher concentrations. As of 6/21/24, RM Clayton, South River, Utoy Creek, Johns Creek, and Little River are in the LOW (5 sites) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for Columbus, College Park, and Big Creek.

Parainfluenza RNA As a reminder, the program is temporarily sunsetting measurements of parainfluenza to run the new H5 specific influenza assay currently being tested at all WastewaterSCAN sites.

Norovirus GII (HuNoV GII) RNA concentrations range between 1,300,000 - 11,000,000 copies/g, and the population-weighted average line when the data is normalized by PMMoV for the 8 Georgia sites is within the middle third level. HuNoV GII RNA chart below also shows the raw data. As of 6/21/24, Little River is in the HIGH (1 site) wastewater category. South River & Johns Creek are in the MEDIUM (2 sites) wastewater category. Then RM Clayton & Utoy Creek are in the LOW (2 sites) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for Columbus, College Park, and Big Creek.

Rotavirus RNA concentrations have been below 216,000 copies/g over the last two weeks. The chart below shows the population-weighted average line is shown in black plus the raw data for each site. As of 6/21/24, RM Clayton and Utoy Creek are in the HIGH (2 sites) wastewater category. South River and Johns Creek are in the MEDIUM (2 sites) wastewater category. Little River is in the LOW (1 site) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for Columbus, College Park, and Big Creek.

Mpox DNA results have been non-detect at all Georgia sites in the last 21 days. This heat map shows data since July 2022. Sites are labeled in the rows and each date a sample was collected as a column. The color blue means the sample was non-detect for mpox DNA and the color maroon means Mpox DNA was detected. White indicates no sample was collected. RM Clayton, South River, Utoy Creek, Johns Creek, and Little River are in the LOW (5 sites) wastewater category as of 6/21/24. There was not enough data to calculate a category for Columbus, College Park, and Big Creek.

Candida auris DNA has been detected both the Columbus and Utoy Creek sites in the last two weeks, based on the heat map below. The highest C. auris DNA concentrations were detected at the Columbus site and below 2,600 copies/g. As of 6/21/24, RM Clayton, South River, Utoy Creek, Johns Creek, and Little River are in the LOW (5 sites) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for Columbus, College Park, and Big Creek.

Hepatitis A RNA has been detected at Little River and RM Clayton over the last two weeks, according to the heat map. HAV RNA concentrations have been below 9,500 copies/g. As of 6/21/24, both Little River and RM Clayton are in the MEDIUM (2 sites) wastewater category while South River, Utoy Creek, & Johns Creek are in the LOW (3 sites) wastewater category. There was not enough data to calculate a category for Columbus, College Park, and Big Creek.

Protocols (Pre-analytical methods and SARS-CoV-2 analytical methods including controls):

• High Throughput RNA Extraction and PCR Inhibitor Removal of Settled Solids for Wastewater Surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 RNA
• High Throughput pre-analytical processing of wastewater settled solids for SARS-CoV-2 RNA analyses
• Quantification of SARS-CoV-2 variant mutations (HV69-70, E484K/N501Y, del156-157/R158G, del143-145, LPPA24S, S:477-505, and ORF1a Del 141-143) in settled solids using digital RT-PCR
• High Throughput SARS-COV-2, PMMoV, and BCoV quantification in settled solids using digital RT-PCR

Pre-prints and peer-reviewed publications provided WWSCAN methods: 

• SARS-CoV-2 
• Influenza, Human metapneumovirus, Respiratory syncytial virus, Human parainfluenza
• Mpox
• Norovirus GII
• Adenovirus group F, Rotavirus, Candida auris, Hepatitis A
• Enterovirus D68

Newly published papers are available here:

• Solid-liquid partitioning of Dengue West Nile, Zika, Hepatitis A, Influenza A, and SARSCoV-2 viruses in wastewater from across the United States
• Detection of Hemagglutinin H5 Influenza A Virus Sequence in Municipal Wastewater Solids at Wastewater Treatment Plants with Increases in Influenza A in Spring, 2024
• Persistence of Human Respiratory Viral RNA in Wastewater Settled Solids

Public Health Factsheets:

• Influenza A Fact Sheet: Provides a summary of a November 2023 paper exploring how to analyze wastewater data to extract relevant public health insights on Influenza A. Click here to access the IAV fact sheet.
• RSV Fact Sheet: Provides a summary of a March 2024 paper exploring how to analyze wastewater data to extract relevant public health insights on RSV. Click here to access the RSV fact sheet.

New WastewaterSCAN Published Body of Work document:

• We are excited to share a new document that provides an overview of the program’s peer-reviewed scientific literature, organized by topics and themes. Click here to access the WastewaterSCAN published body of work.

A complete list of peer-reviewed publications utilizing the WWSCAN data is available here!

The next stakeholder meeting will take place next week on Friday, July 12th @ 12 PM EST. You can use this zoom link to join. Hope to see you there!